Stocking and method of plating heels in stockings



March 8, 1956 M. BRYAN ET AL 2,737,035

STOCKING AND METHOD OF PLATING HEELS IN STOCKINGS Filed June 19, 1951 Snnentor AUGUSTUS M. BRYAN CHARLES O. SIMMS Gttorneg United States Patent STOCKING AND METHOD OF PLA IilNG HEELS :IN

STOCKINGS Augustus M. Bryan, Chattanoogafljenm, and Charles 'Simms, 'Catoosa"County,Ga., assignors to lSry-an F. F.

'Mills, Inc.,"Chattanga, Tenn., a corporation Application June 19, 1951, Serial No. 232,424

3'Claims. "(Cl."66'182) 'This invention relates generally to -a method of plating, and more particularly to a method of plating .heels in stockings.

IIn'the knitting of ordinary hosiery, reinforcing threads are added at the heel of the stocking to give added strength. It has been the custom in -the past to add this splicing or plating yarn -by a thread carrier which had a lesser lead than the thread carrier which laid on the body yarn. The reason for this was that the body yarn thread carrier was given a short lead so that there would be little chance of loosening and disarranging the yarn before the sinkers came out between the needles to hold it tight, and so it was natural that when the plating carrier was to be picked up, workers in the prior art merely set the machines to pick up a carrier having a still shorter lead than the body yarn carrier and laid the plating yarn down so as to follow right along behind the body yarn carrier. By knitting in this manner the body yarn showed up on the outside of the stocking and the plating yarn showed up on the inside of the stocking, and this was exactly what was wanted where heavy plating yarns were used or where it was desired to change the general appearance of the stocking as little as possible.

When ladies stockings with black heels came back into vogue a short time ago, hosiery manufacturers started using jet black threads for the plating in the heel of the stocking. Thus, where it was desired merely to change the color of the heel, it was logical that this should be done by changing the color of the plating yarn, and it did not appear necessary to make any other change in the fabric or in the method of producing the same. For, although the jet black plating yarns showed up on the inside of the stocking at the heel, they were of such contrasting color that they showed through the very fine body yarn and thus produced a stocking having a black heel regardless of what color the body yarn was later dyed. It is understood, of course, that stockings are knitted in white yarn and then later dyed to the desired color.

If the heels on stockings knitted in the above described manner are examined closely, it will be found that from the outside the appearance of the heel, although generally black, takes on a brownish cast from the body yarn which lies on the outside. Also, if the yarns are not laid down smoothly by the thread carriers, it is likely that the black plating yarn may jump over on the other side of the body yarn so as to lie on the outside of the stocking and thus produce a jet black streak in the heel.

It is an object, therefore, of the present invention to provide an improved stocking. Another object of our invention is to provide a method of plating heels in stockings in which the plating yarn is made to lie on the outside of the stocking.

Another object of our invention is to provide a method of plating to produce a heel of more sharply contrasting color.

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Another object ofour invention is to provide "a method of plating in which streaks are substantially eliminated.

Other and further objects and advantages of our invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.

Fig. 1 of the drawing is a pictorial view showing how our method is carried out in a "flat knitting machine.

:Fig. 2 shows 'a full fashioned "stocking embodying our invention.

Throughout this specification, the terms yarn or thread are used to signify *w'ool, "cotton, silk, synthetics and other material andyor artificial fibres or materials used or useful in the manufacture of hosiery.

There is shown in the drawing, as it would be 'o'rdinarily arranged in a full-fashioned, flat-bed knitting machine for knitting hosiery, a plurality of needles 10 with a plurality of sin'kers 11 and dividers '12 interposed therebetween. A plating thread carrier 13 lS hOWll laying the plating thread 14 "behind the needles "1 0 first, with an auxiliary body thread carrier 15 following along behind and laying the body thread '16 behind the needles 1 0 and on top of the plating thread 14. It will be observed that the plating thread carrier 13 precedes the auxiliary body thread carrier 15 across the machine, and that the plating thread carrier 13 has a relatively long lead whereas the auxiliary body thread carrier 15 has a relatively short lead ahead of the sinkers, only the sinker in the foreground of the drawing having been pushed forward to form loops of the plating thread and body thread in the throat of the sinker. It will be understood, of course, that the other sinkers and dividers will be thrust forward in the customary manner as the plating thread carrier 13 and the auxiliary body thread carrier 15 advance across the machine and the knitting operation proceeds. Also illustrated in the drawing is a body thread carrier 17v which is idle during the plating operation, but which would normally be picked up to lay down the body thread when the plating operation has been completed and when the plating thread carrier 13 and auxiliary body thread carrier 15 are not in use.

In the development of our method, it was discovered that if the plating thread carrier is caused to move across the machine first, and the body thread carrier comes later with a shorter lead and puts the body yarn down so as to show up on the inside of the stocking at the heel, then the plating thread will appear on the outside of the heel and no matter if the body yarn does occasionally get on the outside it will not cause a streak which is apparent to the eye. Also, it was discovered that the black dyed plating yarn is more apt to stick on the spools (not shown) and to whip around as it comes from the thread carrier, so that by giving the splicing yarn a longer lead it has time to straighten out before the sinkers are pushed forward to form the loops, and a more uniform fabric is produced. In order to accomplish this change in the knitting of a stocking we drop off the ordinary body thread carrier 17, pick up a plating thread carrier 13 close to the needles, and also pick up a different body thread carrier having a shorter lead than the plating thread carrier and positioned so as to lay the new body thread onto the machine so that it shows up on the inside of the heel instead of on the outside. It is clearly shown in the drawing how the plating thread coming from the thread carrier having the longer lead lies close to the needles, and how the body yarn thread carrier coming later with the shorter lead, and positioned from the needles, lays the body yarn against the needles with a greater angle and thus assures that the body yarn will appear on the inside of the finished stocking.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that we 2,737,035 Pa'terited Mar-. 6, 1956 have provided a needed method of great convenience and usefulness which produces a superior product.

' We claim:

1. A full fashioned stocking having a body formed of main body thread, characterized by a heel formed of auxiliary body thread and plating thread of a ditferent color, wherein said plating thread lies predominantly on the outside of said heel and said auxiliary body thread lies predominantly on the inside of said heel.

2. A method of knitting a full fashioned stocking comprising feeding and knitting body yarn, discontinuing the feed of body yarn at the start of heel forming, feed ing plating yarn with a predetermined lead ahead of the formation of loops and subsequently feeding auxiliary body yarn, with a lead shorter than that used in feeding the plating yarn, in plating the heel and substituting the first mentioned body yarn for the plating yarn and the auxiliary body yarn.

, 3. A-method of knitting a full fashioned stocking comprising feeding and knitting body yarn, discontinuing the feed of body yarn at the start of heel forming, feeding plating yarn with a predetermined lead ahead of the formation of loops and at a predetermined angle to the rows'of knitting, and subsequently feeding auxiliary body yarn, with a lead shorter than that used in feeding the plating yarn and at a greater angle to the rows of knitting, in plating the heel and substituting the first mentioned body yarn for the plating yarn and the auxiliary body yarn.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 878,724 Guenther Feb. 11, 1908 911,656 Hirner Feb. 9, 1909. 1,018,612 Guenther Feb. 27, 1912 1,023,313 Hirner Apr. 16, 1912 l,l97,551 Schmidt Sept. 5, 1916 1,849,783 Beacham Mar. 15, 1932 2,015,002 Coller, Jr. Sept. 17, 1935 2,120,796 Coile June 14, 1938 2,136,892 Roesener Nov. 15, 1938 2,136,893 Roesener Nov. 15, 1938 2,192,625 Thurston et al. Mar. 5, 1940 2,241,779 Hartmann May 13, 1941 2,261,595 St. Pierre Nov. 4, 1941 2,480,943 McDonald et a1. Sept. 6, 1949 2,546,444 Hall Mar. 27, 1951 2,591,883 Shortland et a1. Apr. 8, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS I 4,120 Great Britain 1889' 11,470 Great Britain 1906 

